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T. DOUGHERTY.

ADVERTISING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED H25. 21. 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

WITNESSES l/VVEIVTOR M Ana/Mk9 Patented Sept 30,1919.

TERENCE DOUGI-IERTY, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

ADVERTISING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent. 7 Patented Sept. 30, 1919.

Application filed February 21, 1918. Serial No. 218,572.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, TERENCE DOUGHERTY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the city of New York, borough of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Advertising Device, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to changeable exhibitors or advertising appliances, and has particular reference to means for causing the presentation of variable panels in succession at certain fixed predetermined view-V points or windows, whereby not only will the information be imparted from the panels but unusual attractiveness will be provided by reason of the changeability thereof.

Another object of the invention is to equip a moving object such as a vehicle with changeable advertising appliances with facilities for actuating or changing the advertising appliances from the moving parts of the vehicle during the progress thereof.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an advertising apparatus including a cabinet with windows at different places and a series of movable or interchangeable legend bearing panels movable in succession into view at or through said windows, one side of each panel being visible through one window while the other side of the same panel in succession will be visible through the other window.

With the foregoing and other objects in view the invention consists in the arrange ment and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed, and while the invention is not restricted to the exact details of construction disclosed or suggested herein, still for the purpose of illustrating a practical embodiment thereof reference is had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which like reference characters designate the same parts in the several views, and in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of a motor vehicle. equipped with my improvement, a portion of the structure being broken away to disclose the nature and location of a part of the operating devices.

Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the same partly in section,

Fig. 3 is a perspective detail view looking toward the upper right hand corner of Fig.

2 a; an angle, but with the cabinet omitted; an

Fig. 4: is a perspective detail view of a sllghtly modified form of the device.

As suggested by the illustrations my device is designed especially for use on a delivery wagon or other vehicle whether of the self propelled type or otherwise for the purpose of displaying certain advertising matter in an attractive manner while the vehicle is passing along the street or roadway. I wish it to be understood, however, that the device may be used on stationary equipment such as an elevated building, store window, or the like. Hence while the running gear of a vehicle is particularly well adapted for the operation of the movable parts of my apparatus, it is obvious that any, other power or motor means may be utilized.

With particular reference to the illustrations I show a motor vehicle 10 having formed upon any part of the body 11 a casing or cabinet 12 which serves to inclose the main portions of my apparatus in such a manner as to hide all except those parts that are intended to be viewed. In the form shown the cabinet is provided on each of its vertical sides with a pair of windows 13,

one window of each pair being directly above the other while all the other parts of the cabinet are preferably tightly closed not only to hide the inner parts, but to prevent dust, dirt, or the like from getting into the mechanism.

Within the upper portion of the cabinet I provide a pair of endless flexible members such as sprocket chains 14 mounted to operate simultaneously in parallel vertical planes which in the form indicated extend transversely of the vehicle. At equal intervals along these two chains there are suspended between the chains a series of sign panels 15 all so hung upon rods or axes 16 as to always hang in vertical planes irrespective of the action of the chains around any suit able guide or supporting means therefor, and each of the panels is designed to carry on itsopposite faces any desired or variable inscriptions such .as advertising matter or the like.

17 indicates a master shaft journaled in fixed bearings directly back of and of substantially the same level as the partition or bar 13 between the two windows on one sideof the cabinet. Adjacent to its opposite ends 'this shaft is provided with sprocket wheels sprocket wheels 19' arranged each above a wheel 18 and coaxially of each other. Each of the wheels 19 is mounted upon a short shaft 20 suitablysupported in bearings so as to offer no obstruction to the movement of the panels 15 between the short axles 20 and the idler sprocket wheels '19 secured thereto. The vertical distance between the axes of the shafts 17 and 20 is practically equal to thevertical width of each of the panels 15'. The manner of mounting the panels and means for supporting them just referred to provides that two of the panels will always be visible at the two windows 13 and close to the vertical plane of said windows, the top or axis of each panel being just in front of and in the same horizontal plane as, the axis of the rotary supports therefor.

The direction of movement of the panels is indicated by the arrows on Fig.2. While the panels in the upper series move in succession toward the right in said figure they are free to move between the upper idler wheels 19 and since the axis of each panel while approaching the upper window operatestangentially over the idlers, the lower edge of such panel will be carried well over the solid axle 17 so that there can be no possibility of interference between the panels and said axle, and hence the panels will not be tilted at any time or by any means out of true vertical planes-since they are into its display position the next lower panel suspended for free pivotal movement around their axes 16. In the preferred operation of my apparatusthe chains and the series of panels suspended therefrom are given a step by-step movement the extent of such movement at each. step being preferably exactly equal to the distance between the two adjacent axes 16 and furthermore the means to operate the chains and panels are so designed that the operation shall always cease when two of the panels are directly at the windows or with the axes 16 thereof directly in front of and in the same plane as the axes of the shafts'17 and 20. I It follows, therefore, that while each Off the upper in moving out of display position will be correspondingly moved downward through a similar are so that the two runs of panels will be spaced from each'other at least as much as the effective diameter. of the sprocket wheels 18 and'19. This fact furthermore insures that there shall be no possible danger of interference between the two runs of panels at any point intermediate of the two pairs of windows.

At the opposite side of the cabinet and adjacent to the other pair of windows 13 the panels 15 are brought in succession into display positionover other idler sprockets 19 aving the'same relation to one another that the sprockets 18 and 19 bear to oneanoth'er at the aforesaid side of the casing. The same step by step change of display is effected accordingly, the only difierence being,

however, that the panels move upward instead of downward in succession.

Any'suitable means may be provided to actuate the two chains 14 step by step as already suggested. To this end andespecially as applied to a moving vehicle I provide a bevel pinion 21 for connection with or rotation from the hub 22 of one of the vehicle wheels. mentwith a large bevel gear 23 which is rotated constantly therefrom at a low speed around a vertical axis. Connected in any convenient manner with the wheel 23 as through a shortaxle 24. is a mutilated toothed gear 25 preferably of relatively large diameter but having a relatively small number of teeth 25 adapted to mesh with the teeth of a small pinion 26,the number of teeth 25" being'equal in numberto those on the pinion so that for each rotation of the wheel 25 the pinion 26 will be given one rotation. Inasmuch,however, as the teeth 25 cover a relatively small portion of the periphery of the wheel 25 the period of rotation of the pinion 26 will 'be relatively This pinion has constant engage short and the period of rest resulting from spondingly long. The pinion 26 is connected to thelower end of the shaft comprising preferably 'a flexible portion 27 having telescopic connection at 28 with an upper portion 29 which may be rigid and mounted in fixed bearings either on the inside or outside of the car body. Betweenthe upper end of the shaft 29 and the adjacent end of the shaft 17 I provide-miter gears 30 having constant mesh... While I have just described the construction of the gear 26 and cooperating parts as to provide for a complete rotation of the shaft at each movement thereof it is obvious that the relation thereof to the gears 30 may be varied and still insure the step by step movement of the panels to the extent desired and hence I do notwish to be unnecessarily limited to the particular" proportions or movements 7 .just described as an illustration.

The operation of the step bystep driving means herein illustrated. may be briefly summarized as follows: With the rotation of the vehicle wheel in a forward direction at any usual or relatively high speed the large bevel gear 23 will be driven at a low speed uni-.

form and proportional to the relative sizes of the wheels 21- and 23. For each rotation of the wheel 23 the mutilated gear 25 will be given one rotation and hence the pinion 26 and miter gears 30 will be given one rotation, but the rotation of the latter parts will be interrupted and will be of a relatively short duration with a correspondingly long dwell incident to the smooth portion of the periphery of the wheel 25. Therefore the two signs at each side of the vehicle will be plainly visible and in stationary position long enough to be noticed and read and then a quick change of the signs will be eflected with another relatively long dwell. While the two signs at one side of the cabinet are being shifted a corresponding shift in the other direction is being effected at the other side.

WVith the gearing adjacent to the vehicle axle held in fixed position with respect to the axle and driving wheel and the upper or tion of the shaft29 being mounted in xed bearings on the vehicle body I provide means to accommodate all vibration in any direction between the vehicle body and the axle. This is accomplished by means of the flexible shaft 27 and the telescopic joint 28. In other words the vehicle body may move in any direction horizontally without cramping the gearing by virtue of the flexible connection 27 and it may move up or down freely within all practical limits by virtue of the telescopic joint 28 either in connection with or independently of any horizontal movement and yet the effect of the rotation of the parts as desired will not be disturbed.

Since all of the panels 15 are adapted to carry advertising or descriptive matter on their opposite faces and the panels never turn over around their individual axes it follows that all of the panels may carry on one face one story so to be legible through one pair of windows, and on their other face a totally difierent story legible through the other pair of windows.

Fig. 4: indicates a modification in which a series of panels 15' are carried by an endless chain 14, the panels being suspended and operated by means of the chain in a single vertical plane closely parallel to the plane in which the chain is supported and operated. Hence with this arrangement of the device the several signs may be brought to view in succession at windows 13 arranged in a plane perpendicular to the relative position of the windows previously described.

I claim:

In an advertising device, the combination with a covered vehicle, a closed compartment on top of the vehicle cover, and a window glass on two of the opposite vertical sides of said compartment, of a pair of horizontal shafts adjacent each of said windows, a sprocket on each end of said shafts, a pair of endless chains passing over said sprockets, a plurality of legend bearing panels pivoted to said chains, and means for rotating said shafts intermittently from the driving mechanism of said vehicle.

. TERENCE DOUGHERTY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

